My beliefs

     My beliefs affect everything I do.  I'm sure most of you noticed that I don't swear.  I don't write or read sexually explicit things.  My books have a noticeable amount of violence, but I try to tone even that down.  I think that those things are a part of normal life, especially in today's times, but I try not to make them a part of my life.  I don't think I'm in the minority in this either.  Internet, television, literature, and everyday culture seems to be pushing us to accept these undesirable habits as normal, and in some cases, healthy.  I don't believe they are.

     I think most people are uncomfortable around particularly vulgar language.  Even people that swear regularly feel self-conscious about it around children or the elderly.  I think most people are uncomfortable with nudity in movies and tv shows, especially depending on who else is in the room.  I think most people have good values of family and friends.  Most people want to shelter their children from the harsh realities of the world.  Most people want to live good lives.

     I normally wouldn't bring any of this up, but today is a Bio day for my blog; a day for me to share what is going on in my life, and in my personal life it's a special day.  Every 6 months the leaders of my faith give a general conference for all of the members of the church worldwide.  Today, they had the opening session of this general conference (the first of 4 sessions), and I sat and listened to it with my wife and children via the internet.  The last speaker, Elder L. Tom Perry, spoke about a conference held with most of the major religions of the world.  He spoke of the commonality that we all had in the desire to maintain family as a focal point of our existences.  The talk may have offended a lot of the radicals and minorities out there, but the message I heard was that there are a lot of other people out there that want their kids to have values which the media are constantly trying to undermine.  The media wants us to believe that casual sex, vulgarity, violence, and a general sense of irreverence is the norm in today's society.  In reality, that is the voice of the minority yelling so loudly that most of us are left feeling like we are out-dated in our beliefs, and in the minority.  You are in the majority if you want a spouse and kids, and live a normal, happy life.

     I will remain true to my beliefs.  You will never find vulgarity, sex, or any of those things in my writing.  I will always warn others of those things in the books I review.  I will always recommend good books which hold relatively good values and messages.

     For those of you interested, I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Some refer to us as the "Mormons" because we use a set of scriptures called The Book of Mormon along with the Bible.  Some refer to us as L.D.S. (Latter-day Saints).  Either appellation is acceptable.

     We are a Christian faith.  There have been several religions which have broken off from the church who have sullied the name.  Because of these groups, many think we are a cult, or practice weird things.  We don't.  We a Christians.  We believe in, teach, and follow the principles of the Bible.  We also have a set of scriptures from another group of the tribes of Israel; their writings were compiled by a prophet called Mormon, so we call the book The Book of Mormon.  We also believe that God continues to call prophets today to counsel us with problems we face in today's world.  The first prophet he called since the death of Jesus and His disciples was the prophet Joseph Smith.  We don't worship Joseph Smith anymore than we would worship Moses or Abraham.  He was just a prophet called, like those in the Bible times, to teach people about God.  Joseph gave us prophecies just like the old ones in the Bible or Book of Mormon.  These newer scriptures are found in the Doctrine and Covenants.  Joseph also received scriptures lost to time and multiple translations of the Bible, and these restored scriptures are found in The Pearl of Great Price.  There have been 15 prophets since Joseph Smith, and each one of them has passed down messages from God, just like He has done from the beginning of time.  It always amazes me when people think this is weird.  Why would God suddenly stop speaking to us?  Why would he suddenly stop calling prophets?  At any rate, these general conferences are when these prophets address the world formally.  You can listen to them live online through this link here.  Just click the "watch general conference live" link.

     I've  personally read the Bible (both old and new testaments), The Book of Mormon, The Doctrine and Covenants, The Pearl of Great Price, the Torah, and the Qur'an.  I've been to the worship meetings of literally hundreds of different religions and sects.  I love learning about God.  I love teaching what I've learned.  The links I've shared have all the answers, but I'd be glad to answer any questions anyone might have.  I am not, however, interested in fighting with people who want to attack any religion.  I believe that most are good, and I gained that belief through personal study and visits.  Chances are, I've been to your church/religion.  Don't judge mine, or anyone else's until you can say the same.

     People are good.  Don't feel like your beliefs are out-dated.  Don't feel like you are in the minority.  The media represents the minority, but speaks loud enough for everyone to hear, and then shames those who speak out against it.  There are over 7 billion people on the planet, and almost all of them are trying to live good, chaste, virtuous, happy lives.  The horrible things you see on the news, and read in the paper, are the most horrific things the newspapers can find.  They want to shock you so that you'll read/watch.  If those things were truly commonplace, they wouldn't get your attention, and get you to buy the paper/watch the news.

     God has a plan for us.  It is centered around the family.  If you are unhappy, scared, confused, lost, lonely, or just feel like something is missing in your life there are answers.  My life has trials,  everyone's does, but I know where I came from.  I know why I'm here.  I know where I'm going after this life.  I even know why we suffer some of the horrible things we have to pass through in this life.  There is a very simple plan which God has laid out for all of his children.  You have a purpose.  Your life holds meaning.  Your suffering is not in vain, nor does it go unnoticed.   Look around on the church's website and you'll find the answers to most of your questions.  There are also missionaries who can come and talk to you personally, no matter where you live, if you want answers.  I would also be glad to help anyone out who feels like something is missing in life.  My beliefs have carried me through many life-threatening moments.  They've also helped me through challenges I haven't begun to share on this, or any other, forum.  There is great comfort in knowing the "why" in life.